1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a pedestrian-crossing support system, mounted in a vehicle, such as an autonomous vehicle or a passenger automobile, for supporting a pedestrian in safely crossing a road at any place, and a method for supporting a pedestrian in crossing a road.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, an apparatus mounted in a vehicle for supporting avoidance of a crash has been disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. H10-105891, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. Such vehicle support apparatus detects an obstacle, including a pedestrian, around a vehicle, and, when the vehicle is determined to have a risk of crashing into the obstacle, stops the vehicle, or warns the vehicle driver.
An apparatus for supporting a pedestrian in safely crossing a road at a crosswalk which has been installed on the road is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-175590, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
The conventional art enables avoidance of a crash between a vehicle and a pedestrian running into a roadway, and enables a pedestrian to be supported in safely crossing a road at a crosswalk already installed on the road.
However, the conventional art has a difficulty in avoiding harsh braking of the vehicle when a pedestrian runs into a roadway having no crosswalk, and enabling the pedestrian to safely cross the roadway.
On a road having no crosswalk, neither a crosswalk nor a traffic signal for pedestrians is present, and thus a pedestrian has a difficulty in safely crossing a road. Since no equipment for supporting a pedestrian in crossing a road is present on a road, the pedestrian needs to check a travelling vehicle visually to determine whether or not the pedestrian can safely cross the road. However, visual checking of a vehicle by a pedestrian has a limitation, and particularly, it is difficult for the pedestrian to predict how a vehicle is going to move.
Installation of equipment on a road, such as a crosswalk or a traffic signal for pedestrians, enables a pedestrian to safely cross the road. To enable a pedestrian to safely crossing a road at any place where the pedestrian wants to cross, a large number of equipment, such as crosswalks and traffic signals for pedestrians, are required. This leads to a problem of high cost of installation of the equipment.